Amsterdam

Affordable accommodation within Amsterdam's tiny and coveted historic center is almost impossible to come by, and even the shortest of taxi rides seems to cost at least 10 euros ($12.40, at $1.24 to the euro). But if you take your cues from the locals who get around on bikes and make do with living on the outskirts, this city can be done on a tight budget.

Where to Eat Cheaply

You get what you pay for when it comes to food in the Netherlands, where most ingredients are imported or grown at fairly high cost in greenhouses. So unless you have a strong affinity for bitterballs — fried meatballs that are the buffalo wings of the Netherlands — you can't avoid spending a fairly substantial amount for decent meals. Fortunately, the intimate and cozy Balthazar's Keuken (Elandsgracht 108; 31-20-420-2114), while considered one of Amsterdam's top restaurants, is also one of the most affordable, serving up a three-course prix-fixe meal at 24.50 euros. A typical menu might start with an assortment of five hot and cold appetizers like wild spinach croquettes or cinnamon crostini with spicy beet root, followed with a choice of a meat or a fish main dish like a bouillabaisse with saffron, fennel and red onions and end with a dessert of espresso mascarpone with prunes poached in sherry. A bottle of house wine is 15 euros.

Lodging for Under 100 Euros

The Lloyd (Oostelijke Handelskade 34; 31-20-561-3636; www.lloydhotel.com), a 1921 building on the water in the Eastern Docklands about 10 minutes east of Central Station, recently transformed into a modern and airy hotel, offers rooms at 80 to 300 euros. While the small 80-euro rooms mean sharing a bathroom and shower down the hall, they are one of the best deals in town. Single rooms for 85 euros a night can be found at the newly opened NL Hotel (Nassaukade 368; 31-20-689-0030; www.nl-hotel.com), just a few minutes' walk from Leidseplein. Decorated by the well-known Dutch designer Edward van Vliet, rooms are small but stylish. Prices for a single go up to 100 euros on weekend nights, and breakfast is 10 euros a person.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

This year marks the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt's birth, and to celebrate, the city has organized a whirlwind of exhibits and events. The cheapest way to experience it all is to buy the I Amsterdam Card (www.iamsterdamcard.com), which for 31 euros offers access to the city's most important museums, two boat tours and unrestricted use of the city's efficient public transportation system. It's good for 24 hours after its initial use.

Best Things to Do Free

Vondelpark, the city's largest park, hosts a series of free open-air concerts throughout the summer starting in June (www.openluchttheater.nl ). Also, every Friday at 8 p.m. hundreds of in-line skaters and roller skaters — all experienced visitors are welcome — converge on the park near the Filmmuseum for a night of rolling through the city (www.fridaynightskate.com).

Best Money-Saving Tip

Like-a-Local is a quirky travel company that offers an affordable variety of experiences with Amsterdamers as hosts. That might include living with a local in the emerging De Pijp neighborhood (79 euros a night for a room with its own bathroom) or a four-course dinner cooked by Liedewij and Jolein (27.50 euros a person including wine) in their home. Or there are private boat rides through the canals at night. At 60 euros for two hours, that's an especially good deal when shared among a few friends. (31-20-670-2483; www.like-a-local.com).

Athens

The crowds may have gone, but Athens is basking in the afterglow of its 2004 Olympics homecoming, one that comes with a hefty price tag. Not only are residents still struggling to pay off the multimillion dollar makeover, but rampant price-gouging has pushed up the cost of living — and visiting.

Where to Eat Cheaply

Tavernas in Athens are like delis in New York — they're everywhere, but just a handful offer delicious food at decent prices. O Platanos (Diogenous 4; 30-210-322-0666) serves a mouthwatering giouvetsi — lamb and pasta baked in a terra-cotta dish — in a quaint yet authentic Greek setting, at the foot of the Acropolis under a shady plane tree. Vegetarians can feast on the taverna's assortment of platters ranging from yogurt and cucumber dip to beans soaked in a savory olive oil. A meal for two fetches around 25 euros, or $31, at $1.24 to the euro. For haute fish cuisine, venture to Varoulko (80 Piraios, 30-210-522-8400). Some of tastiest dishes here are the cheapest. The unique seafood mousaka and glasses of house wine cost less than 40 euros for two. Reservations required. Closed Sunday.

Lodging for Under 100 Euros

Many of the new boutique hotels are in the gentrified downtown neighborhoods. Hotel Eridanus (78 Piraios , 30-210-5205360; www.eridanus.gr), a five-story renovated neo-Classical house, offers great deals and breathtaking views of the Acropolis, with rooms sometimes available through agents for as low as 85 euros a night for a standard double, breakfast included. But with just 38 rooms, it has limited space. So book ahead.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

With its mélange of cross-cultural performances at the Odeon of Herodus Atticus, near the Acropolis, the Athens Festival is the Greek capital's top cultural event. The festival kicks off in June; you can plan ahead with a sneak preview at www.hellenicfestival.gr. The cheapest tickets go for 18 euros, but be sure to bring binoculars and a cushion. Also, consult with the festival's box office (30-210-9282900) for package deals that organizers hope to introduce this year.

Best Things to Do Free

Summer arrives with a frenzy of free events in Athens. Opera divas sing at the ancient Agora, crowds clamber up the Parthenon for midsummer strolls and dancers prance amid ancient ruins until 3 a.m. Check www.cultureguide.gr or English-language newspapers like Kathimerini for a listing of these events — which only take place on nights when there is a full moon. If your travel dates don't coincide with the phases of the moon, then venture to Lycabettus Hill, the tallest spot in Athens, for a rewarding view of the city. No need to tote binoculars up the craggy 968-foot rock. They're available at an observation deck, next to the idyllic 19th-century Chapel of St. George. Religious or not, it's customary for visitors to light a candle, kiss or just glance at the stunning fresco of St. George slaying the dragon.

Best Money-Saving Tip

Don't fall prey to money-gouging taxi drivers. Opt instead for a 10-euro transit pass that offers unlimited use of all forms of public transportation for up to a week. The pass can be bought at the Syntagma metro station, a gleaming minimuseum worth visiting even if you decide to give public transportation a pass.

Barcelona

You may have to pay to stay in Barcelona, but you don't have to pony up too much to play in it. Barca's best diversions — the vast parks of Montjuic and La Ciutadella, the Gaudi-accented boulevards like Passeig de Gracia, the sun-drenched beaches, or the bustle of La Rambla — have always been free, and there are plenty of ways to get a lot of enchantment for your euro.

Where to Eat Cheaply

Tapas would be an easy choice here — especially in the Raval neighborhood behind the appetite-whetting Boquería Market, where the stalls heave with produce and succulent cured meats and cheeses. You can put together a meal for two for less than 10 euros, $12.40, at 1.24 euros to the dollar. At midday, strap on the feedbag. Most restaurants offer specially priced lunch menus with two or three hearty courses often costing less than 10 euros, including a glass of wine and coffee or dessert. And even in the trendiest establishments, the waiter will almost never bring the check until you ask for it, so sip slowly and soak up the sun and atmosphere beachfront at the Carpe Diem Lounge Club (Passeig Maritim 32; 34-93-224-0470; www.cdlcbarcelona.com). For a break from traditional Spanish fare, try the new-school Camper FoodBall (Elisabets 9; www.foodball.com), where everything is not only free — of pesticides and genetic manipulation, that is — but also certified organic and rolled up into appetizing and easy-to-handle round balls to be eaten with the hands and washed down with fresh juices or hemp beer for less than 10 euros.

Lodging for Under 100 Euros

Barcelona was the birthplace of boutique hotels in Spain, most of which have sprung to life well into the 200-to-300-euro territory. The Hotel Banys Orientals (Argentaria 37; 34-93-268- 8460; www.hotelbanysorientals.com) remains a bargain at 95 euros a night for a double room. It is in the heart of the fancier-by-the-minute Born district, and the rooms are modern and casual with dark-wood tester beds, chunky Parsons tables, and lots of white paint and crisp linens. The hotel restaurant, Sr. Parellada, could also easily top the list of the best values in town.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

Between the street festivals, strolling balladeers, and impromptu drunken songfests, your next concert may be just around the next corner. But for music in more luxe surroundings, the city's famous opera house, the Liceu (La Rambla 51-59; 34-93-485-9900; www.liceubarcelona.com), has thoughtfully added a junior varsity to its all-star lineup. In productions that are otherwise identical, the "popular cast," as these excellent but nonfamous performers are known, stand in for the divas and divos, who get the night off. Tickets are at least 50 percent cheaper for these performances, with orchestra seats for "Madama Butterfly" this June selling for 47.50 euros instead of the usual 115.75.

Best Things to Do Free

Look around. So much of the city's charm and rhythm comes from doing nothing beyond taking in its rich history and endless capacity for rejuvenation, like the architectural marvel of the medieval palaces that now house a Picasso museum on Calle Montcada or a once fetid harbor that has been resuscitated into Barcelona's typically stylish riff of the Riviera. Even Gaudí's Park Guell used leftover tiles for the vast expanses of mosaic.

Best Money-Saving Tip

Buy a two-to-five-day Barcelona Card (23 to 34 euros) online (www.barcelonaturisme.com) and get a 10-percent discount on the card, which grants free or discounted entry to many museums and attractions, and, perhaps more important, offers unlimited free travel on virtually all of the city's public transport, including the airport train.

Berlin

This summer may not be the best time to visit Germany if you're looking for a cheap vacation — not with the World Cup coming this year. But if you avoid Berlin for most of June and July, especially the weekend of July 9 when it will be the host of the final, you might be able to score some bargains.

Where to Eat Cheaply

Imbiss is German for snack bar, and Berlin is well endowed with them, including plenty where a meal will run you less than 8 euros ($9.92 at $1.24 to the euro). A typical imbiss offers roasted sausages, including the popular currywurst, a sort of Eurasian blend dowsed in ketchup that's laced with curry powder. A popular place is Bier's Mini 7, near the Zoologischer Garten train station at Kantstrasse 7. You can have your wurst with a roll or French fries (called pommes frites in German, as in French, but pronounced POMM-mess FREET-ess), coffee, cola or mineral water, for about 4 or 5 euros.

Lodging for Under 100 Euros

The Art'otel (Lietzenburgerstrasse 85; 49-30-887-7770; www.artotel.de) has a central location in what was West Berlin. Officially, the prices run about 120 euros a night for a single and 130 euros for a double. But calling the reservations office directly will usually get you a double for just under 88 euros on most nights. The hotel is minimalist-modern with a collection of original works by Andy Warhol.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

The Tipi Zelt am Kanzleramt is in the Grosse Querallee — the same area where at the turn of the 20th century Germans went to be entertained. Near Germany's modern chancellor's office, Tipi, which means tepee in German, is a very large tent that offers cabaret, dance, acrobatics and musical comedy — as well as dinner and drinks. Tickets range from 8 euros on Mondays up to 40 euros. Information about specific programs and tickets are available at 49-180-327-9358 or online at www.tipi-das-zelt.de.

Best Things to Do Free

Take a walk from Checkpoint Charlie, the only spot where diplomats and Americans could cross the divided city during the cold war, to the almost completed new Hauptbahnhof, or main train station, following roughly the route of the old Berlin Wall and through a landscape that was at the center of the tragic 20th century. Starting at Checkpoint Charlie, roughly where Friedrichstrasse intersects with Kochstrasse, make your way (it won't be hard with a simple Berlin map) to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, also known as the Holocaust Memorial, the Brandenburg Gate and then the Reichstag. From there make your way around to the ultramodern parliamentary office building. Straight ahead, you'll see Europe's newest and most modern transportation hub, scheduled to open in time for the World Cup.

Best Money-Saving Tip

Buy passes on the Berlin transit system for inexpensive unlimited access to all buses and trains. You can get passes for one day or one week or even one month, or you can get a Berlin WelcomeCard, which includes either a 48- or 72-hour transit pass for Berlin and nearby suburbs like Potsdam as well as coupons for discounts at museums, restaurants and even fitness centers. The regular passes and WelcomeCards are available at most train platforms. A 48-hour WelcomeCard, good for travel by one adult and three children younger than 14, is 16 euros.

Copenhagen

Cobbled streets, a sleek new subway system, some of the top restaurants in Scandinavia and that ubiquitous Nordic sense of style: It all adds up to a highly attractive — and costly — vacation spot. Yet even though this city of Renaissance castles and classic modern design routinely ranks among the 10 priciest places in the world, a recent crop of wallet-friendly hot spots and some enduring gratis experiences mean more mileage for your kroners.

Where to Eat Cheaply

For haute cuisine, the city's best kroner-to-quality ratio is Copenhagen Food Consulting (Abel Cathrines Gade 7; 45-3313-6060). A haven of minimalist Scandinavian style in the trendy Vesterbro district, the two-year-old upscale restaurant (known by the locals as Cofoco) offers a seasonal three-course menu of modern Danish-French dishes for 225 kroner (about $37, at 6.3 kroner to the dollar). Offerings might include cod with apple and mint or duck with yogurt, beets and horseradish. Its bargains have made Cofoco a popular cult address, so book in advance. Or hit the streets for a hot dog, the sidewalk specialty of Copenhagen. Sold from pushcarts labeled "Polser," the tube steaks come thick or thin, grilled or boiled, and topped with dried onions, sweet pickles and tangy rémoulade sauce, generally about 20 kroner.

Lodging for Under 100 Euros

The words "designer-chic" and "hostel" don't usually wind up side by side, but the new Danhostel Copenhagen City (50 H.C. Andersens Boulevard, 45-3311-8585; www.danhostel.dk) is changing that. Outfitted by the Danish design firm GUBI, which helped furnish the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the 16-story hostel has more than 1,020 beds spread over 187 rooms. You can have one of the cool white chambers all to yourself or share with strangers. An Internet cafe, a restaurant and a central location sweeten the deal. Depending on season, a room for two to four people costs 520 or 600 kroners (70 or 80 euros; $86 or $95) a night.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

Opened last year, the futuristic Copenhagen Opera House, on the island of Holmen (45-3369-6969; www.operahus.dk), has become one of the most talked-about new cultural venues in Europe. Unsold advance tickets to its performances — a roster of ballets, classical concerts and operas — are offered to the public at half price at 4 p.m. on the day of the show at the box office at August Bournonvilles Passage 1, in the main square, Kongens Nytorv. (Half-price, same-day tickets for other venues operated by the Danish government are also sold there.) Another bargain: People under 25 and over 65 receive a 50 percent discount when ordering tickets more than a week in advance.

Best Things to Do Free

A number of top museums permanently abolished entry fees in January, including the National Museum (Ny Vestergade 10; 45-3313-4411), and the National Gallery (Solvgade 48-50; 45-3374-8494), a vast space stocked with European art since 1300 (though special exhibitions can have a fee). Also, circle Wednesday on your calendar: Showcasing cutting-edge creations, the Danish Design Center (27 H.C. Andersens Boulevard, 45-3369-3369) is free on Wednesday from 5 to 9 p.m. Also free on Wednesday (and on Sunday) is the New Carlsberg Museum (Dantes Plads 7; 45-3341-8141) across the street. The collection includes French Impressionist painting and ancient Greek, Roman and Egyptian art. But it is closed for renovation from May 1 to June 27.

Best Money-Saving Tip

Exploring the bicycle-friendly Danish capital on two wheels is a breeze thanks to 2,000 free bikes the city provides from April through November at 110 racks around town. Simply slide a 20-kroner coin into the slot on the front of the bike to release it from the rack. The coin will be returned when the bike is replaced. More details at www.bycyklen.dk.

Dublin

Dubliners are quick to chat about anything, but if you need a surefire conversation starter, try the cost of living. Inflation soared during the late 1990's, pushing the price of staples like The Irish Times up to 1.60 euros ($1.98 at $1.24 to the euro) and a cup of coffee to well over 2 euros. Dinner and drinks at a decent restaurant can easily exceed 40 euros a person, and even 200-euro hotel rooms can seem like a bargain. Here are some ways to stretch your euro.

Where to Eat Cheaply

Italian wine bars have exploded in popularity, probably because they offer tasty dishes at affordable prices. The pioneering and reigning favorite is Dunne & Crescenzi (14 South Frederick Street, 353-1-677-3815), where friendly Italian waiters serve generous glasses of house wine for 3.50 euros and simple dishes like bruschetta for 5.90 and orecchiette with pesto for around 10 euros. Seek out the early-bird menus at many upscale restaurants; for about 30 euros, the same price as a typical entree, you can get a memorable three-course meal.

Lodging for Under 100 Euros

Almost none, unless you want to check into a youth hostel. One exception is the Comfort Inn (Great Denmark Street, 353-1-873-7700; www.comfortinndublin.com), where a basic room goes for 69 to 89 euros. But rates jump at busy times, as high as 199 euros on weekends and during major sporting events and concerts. Bargain hunters might also consider a short-term apartment from rental agencies like Premier Apartments (www.apartments-dublin.com), which has had places starting at 79 euros.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

What Dublin theaters lack in big-budget productions, they make up for in top-notch acting and modest prices. Tickets rarely exceed 30 euros, and Saturday matinees are often less than 15 euros (check the back pages of The Irish Times). Lunchtime plays at Bewley's Café Theater (78 Grafton Street, 353-86-878-4001; www.bewleyscafetheatre.com) are reliably charming and cost 14 euros, including soup and a thick slice of brown bread.

Best Things to Do Free

June into September, free outdoor movies are shown in the Temple Bar cultural district (www.templebar.ie), along with the occasional circus and music concert. Tickets are required for some events and can be picked up at 12 East Essex Street. If you tire of crowds, hop on a northbound commuter train to Howth Head on Dublin Bay. (A round-trip ticket costs 3.50 euros.) The hilltop park offers gorgeous views of the city and the seaside cliffs. A 20-minute train ride in the opposite direction takes you to Dun Laoghaire, a harbor town that Anglophile history buffs still call by its British name, Kingstown. Stroll along the mile-long pier, where seals and porpoises surface occasionally, or along the waterfront to the stone tower where James Joyce set the opening of "Ulysses."

Best Money-Saving Tip

Avoid taxis and drink beer. Cabs are expensive (it costs nearly 4 euros just to flag one down), and bartenders charge as much as 3.60 euros for a stingy 35-milliliter shot of Jameson. Good walking shoes and a taste for Guinness will help protect your wallet.

Geneva

With its reputation as a hive of private banking, the idea of finding a bargain in Geneva may induce peals of laughter. Yet if you know where to look and what to avoid, you can make your way without breaking your own personal bank.

Where to Eat Cheaply

The Bains des Pâquis offers not only the best cheap meal in town but also one of the most atypical Genevois experiences: a public beach, in the center of the city. For no more than 2 Swiss francs (about $1.55, at 1.3 francs to the dollar), you can walk out onto the jetty leading to the Bains and either dive into Lac Leman for a swim or settle down at the "buvette" (snack bar), which offers simple salads and a daily special, like a thick slice of ham with addictive gratineed potatoes (41-22-738-1616; www.buvettedesbains.ch). The wine may come in plastic glasses, but nothing beats the atmosphere, an eccentric cross between Parisian cafe and American summer camp. Dinner for two won't climb beyond 40 francs ($32).

Lodging for Under 100 Euros a Night

At the small, family-run Hôtel de la Cloche (6, rue de la Cloche; 41-22-732-9481; www.geneva-hotel.ch/cloche), just steps from the lake, the décor is bare-bones, but the atmosphere is pleasant and the owners are helpful. Room for two with a bathroom, in high season, start at about 91 euros, or 140 francs..

The Geneva tourism office has a good Web site, www.geneve-tourisme.ch; click on Accommodation and take note of the Bed and Breakfast subcategory. Also consider apartment-hotels or staying a bit outside the heart of the city, in Carouge or the suburbs of Ferney-Voltaire (over the border in France), which is easily reachable by public transportation.

Best Deal on a Cultural Event

From July through September, the Cathédrale St.-Pierre, at the heart of the historic Old City, offers free carillon concerts Saturdays at 5 p.m. and organ concerts at 6 p.m. Similarly, the Église St. Germain on Rue des Granges offers a classical music series on Sunday and Monday evenings at 6 in July and August. But less predictably, the city's leafy Parc La Grange in the Eaux-Vives neighborhood presents free world music concerts every Wednesday and Friday night in July and August.

Best Thing to Do Free

An organization called Geneva Roule (41-22-740-1343; www.geneveroule.ch) offers free bikes from April 30 to Oct. 30 at four locations around the city. All you need to do is show up with a piece of identification and a deposit of 50 francs (about $40) that will be returned at the end of the day. You can choose from adult bikes, children's bikes, even bikes with a child seat or trailer — and locks and helmets are thrown in at no charge.

Best Money-Saving Tip

Geneva has a great, easy-to-use public transportation system. For 7 francs, you can get a ticket good from 9 a.m. until midnight for use anywhere in the city, on not only the buses and trams but also on the shuttle boats (mouettes) that crisscross Lac Leman (10 francs buys you a 24-hour ticket). Bring a picnic and take the No. 3 boat to Genève Plage, and you won't believe you're in the middle of a city.